Editor's Note, March 17, 12:30 p.m.: This article has been updated to include more reflections from people who knew Simpson.

Former U.S. Senator Alan Simpson, 93, passed away Friday, March 14, in Cody. He suffered complications from a broken hip. Simpson grew up in that town before attending the University of Wyoming, where he got his bachelor’s degree in history in 1954 and his pre-law degree in 1958. At UW, he participated in the student senate and even served as president.

He started his political career by serving the Wyoming House of Representatives for 12 years, beginning in 1965. Then, in 1978, he was elected to the U.S. Senate. During his 18 years as a Wyoming senator, he held leadership roles including Minority and Majority Whip. He retired in 1997. But even after his retirement, he stayed active in Wyoming.

“Al Simpson was an amazing friend, an incredible statesman, a thoughtful courageous politician, and a wonderful human being who brought humor, wisdom, and razor-sharp insight to any situation. Wyoming has lost a true light,” Gov. Mark Gordon said in a press release mourning Simpson's passing. “Al embodied the best of Wyoming – what America used to be. Throughout his life, Al was an independent thinker who wasn’t afraid to reach across the aisle (or, as Al would say, “grab folks in the pew behind him by the short hairs”) and work collaboratively to solve problems. He was never afraid to say what was on his mind, but he believed to his core that humor mixed with civility was best in politics and in life.”

Rancher and former Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead said while he was in office and traveling around the country countless people would ask him ‘Do you know Al Simpson?’

“ He was just nationally recognized as someone that had great humor, great vision, great leadership,” he said.

Mead said Simpson set an example for others to follow in terms of what leadership and friendship look like.

“ His legacy will remain, I think, the standard for all of us to look after because [of] the way he recognized that you don't have to agree with someone to be friendly with them,” he said.

Former Wyoming House of Representatives speaker Albert Sommers said Simpson represented Wyoming values.

“He just always struck me as a man with such great integrity that was always straight up and funny to boot,” he said.

Sommers added that he respected him as a politician because “he believed that solutions were a product of compromise.”

One of Simpson’s cherished projects was the Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation near Cody.

Executive Director Aura Sunada Newlin said she first met Simpson when she was an undergraduate at the UW.

“ He's the type of guy who you just see in the grocery store or bump into on the street and he would always remember your name and always remember the context in which he had visited with you the last time,” she said.

Newlin said Simpson helped bring attention to the World War II injustice of Japanese American incarceration that happened near Cody.

“ When he saw something that was wrong, like the mass incarceration of Japanese Americans on the basis of their race he was willing to say it out loud and speak up for the way that that was an injustice and should have never happened,” she said.

The Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation recently opened a new conference center and archive to honor his legacy and his friendship with former Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta.

Simpson often told the story of meeting Mineta as Boy Scouts at Heart Mountain in 1943. Mineta and his family had been held at the Japanese incarceration camp during World War II. The two men remained friends until Mineta’s death in 2022.

“Al has always been a mentor, supporter and inspiration to me throughout my tenure at the Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation,” said Heart Mountain Board Chair Shirley Ann Higuchi. “His constant support, advice and encouragement inspired me to take Heart Mountain to the highest possible level.”

On Friday morning, Gordon ordered both the U.S. and Wyoming flags to be lowered immediately to half-staff. They will remain lowered until sundown at the day of Simpson’s interment.